TECHINAH - BOOK
Containing Prayers and Religious Duties
for the Daughters of Israel
BY
RABBI SIMON GLAZER
Published by
THE STAR HEBREW BOOK CO.
54-58 CANAL STREET
NEW YORK
Printed in the United States of America
COPYRIGHT. 1930
BY THE STAR HEBREW BOOK CO.
NEW YORK. N. Y.
CONTENTS
Page
Preface_5
Psalm for Sunday Morning-7
Psalm for Monday Morning_8
Psalm for Tuesday Morning-10
Psalm for Wednesday Morning_11
Psalm for Thursday Morning_14
Psalm for Friday Morning_16
Psalm for Sabbath Morning_17
Morning Prayer-19
Daily Scriptural Reading_20
Meditation_24
A Psalm of David_25
The Sabbath and Holiday Lights_26
Meditation After Lighting the Sabbath Candles_29
Meditation After Lighting of Candles on the Eve of
Rosh ha-Shanah_31
Meditation After Lighting the Candles on Yom Kippur Eve-33
Prayer After Lighting of Candles on the Eve of Passover (Pesah)_34
Meditation After Lighting of Candles on the Eve of She’buot
(Pentecost)-35
Purity-37
Prayer Before Tebilah_39
Halah (Heave-Offering Cake)_40
Psalm for a Pregnant Woman_45
Meditation_46
Psalm for a Mother After Childbirth_47
Prayer_48
Scriptural Selection at the Bar Mitzvah of a Son-50
Supplication -
Psalm When a Daughter Becomes Twelve Years and One Day Old-
Psalm at the Marriage of a Son (Hallelujah)-
Prayer -
Page
_ 51
.53
.54
.55
Psalm at the Marriage of a Daughter-
Prayer
-57
-59
Psalm for a Sick Member in the Family-
Prayer
Psalm for the New Moon_
Psalm for Rosh ha-Shanah_
Psalm for the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).
Yom Kippur-
Psalm of the Sukkot Festival-
Psalm for Hanukah_
Psalm for Purim-
Psalm for Passover-
Passover_
Psalm for Shc’buot (Pentecost).
_ 61
_70
_72
_79
_83
_85
_87
_91
_93
_95
_96
_97
Table for the Arrangement of the Months, Festivals,
Fast and Feast Days-
Prayer for Sustenance (Parnasah)..
Selected Scriptural Reading for Special Occasions
After Child-Birth .
After Recovering from Sickncss..
.98
106
_108
_ 110
After Returning from a Recreational Trip_114
At the Departure on a Journey of a Near and Dear One_11 5
On the Homecoming of a Near and Dear One_116
After a Restless Night of Evil Dreams_117
On Hearing of Good Tidings of One's Near and Dear Oncs-11 9
..122
-123
123
-124
125
„126
-126
Memorial Service
For the Soul of a Father_
For the Soul of a Mother..
For the Souls of Grandparents and Other Near Relatives.
For the Souls of Those Who Sacrificed Their Lives to
Sanctify the Name of God_
Prayer for a Departed Man-
Prayer for a Departed Woman_
PREFACE
I do not apologize for presenting this volume
to the Jewish woman in the English-speaking
countries. I am merely offering an apology for the
Rabbis who failed to provide such great need long
ago, and permitted decades to go by without offer¬
ing to Jewish womenhood a volume of this kind.
The home should be enriched with spiritual treas¬
ures possible to find in the vast sea of Jewish learn¬
ing. Besides being modern, charming, citizens, so¬
cial leaders, home-makers, mothers and the heart
of Israel, the Jewish ladies have a world all their
own, a privacy which is as sacred to them as life
itself, for they are the life-givers of Israel.
A Jewish mother, in her hour of disappoint¬
ment, or even in her hour of the greatest hap¬
piness, feels like being alone for a while. Why?
It is none else than a call from her Maker to her
soul. Let her pray! And, she would, if any prayer-
book would speak her language, give words to
her thoughts, self-expression to her mood, and
room for her soul to broaden out and spread the
5
wings of her imagination over the entire desert of
mysteries which we call world—life.
The Jewish woman does not become ‘‘Bar
Mitzvah”; She is not a “Bar”; she is, at most,
confirmed, but in her heart of hearts she knows that
she isn’t—isn’t a man. Nature has provided her
with that sense of delicacy which provides her,
under all conditions, with the gift of acting. But
she wants to be herself; she has a craving for
“being alone, and being let alone.’*
Women in Judaism have a special place. They
were excused from such duties which must be
performed at stated times, seasons, hours, or per¬
iods. But they are otherwise obliged to observe
all precepts of the Torah, both mandatory and
prohibitive. In American Israel, the Jewish
women are at the fore-front of synagogue activi¬
ties. Their homes to them are the real temples in
Israel. And, living in a world all their own, it is
but right that special prayers, supplications, medi¬
tations and hymns be supplied to them from origi¬
nal sources, which should add a drop in their cup
of happiness, and take out the poison of their cup
of bitterness.
Rabbi SIMON GLAZER,
New York, Tebet, 14, 5690
6
PSALM FOR SUNDAY MORNING
1 .
The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof;
The world, and they that dwell therein.
For He hath founded it upon the seas,
And established it upon the floods.
Who shall ascend into the mountain of the Lord?
And who shall stand in His holy place?
He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart;
Who hath not taken My name in vain,
And hath not sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of them that seek after Him,
That seek Thy face, even Jacob, Selah.
7
8
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Psalm for Monday Morning
2 .
A song; a Psalm of the sons of Korah.
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
In the city of our God, His holy mountain,
Fair in situation, the joy of the whole earth;
Even mount Zion, the uttermost parts of the north,
The city of the great King.
God in her palaces
Hath made Himself known for a stronghold.
For, lo, the kings assembled themselves,
They came onward together,
They saw, straightway they were amazed;
They were affrighted, they hasted away.
Trembling took hold of them there,
Pangs, as of a woman in travail.
With the east wind
Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish.
As we have heard, so we have seen
In the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our
God—
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
9
God establish it forever!
Selah.
We have thought of Thy loving-kindness, O God,
In the midst of Thy temple.
As is Thy name, O God,
So is Thy praise unto the ends of the earth;
Thy right hand is full of righteousness.
Let mount Zion be glad,
Let the daughters of Judah rejoice,
Because of Thy judgment.
Walk about Zion, and go around about her;
Count the towers thereof.
Mark ye well her ramparts,
Traverse her palaces;
That ye may tell it to the generation following,
For such is God,
Our God, for ever and ever;
He will guide us eternally.
10
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Psalm for Tuesday Morning
3.
A Psalm of Asaph.
God standeth in the congregation of God;
In the midst of judges He judgeth;
How long will ye judge unjustly,
And respect the person of the wicked?
Selah.
Judge the poor and fatherless;
Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
Rescue the poor and needy;
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.
They know not, neither do they understand;
They go about in darkness;
All the foundations of the earth are moved.
I said: ‘Ye are godlike beings,
And all of you sons of the Most High.
Nevertheless ye shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.’
Arise, O God, judge the earth;
For Thou shalt possess all the nations.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
11
Psalm for Wednesday Morning
4.
O Lord, Thou God to whom vengeance belongeth,
Thou God to whom vengeance belongeth, shine
forth.
Lift up Thyself, Thou judge of the earth;
Render to the proud their recompense.
Lord, how long shall the wicked,
How long shall the wicked exult?
They gush out, they speak arrogancy;
All the workers of iniquity bear themselves loftily.
They crush Thy people, O Lord,
And afflict Thy heritage.
They slay the widow and the stranger,
And murder the fatherless.
And they say: ‘The Lord will not see,
Neither will the God of Jacob give heed.’
Consider, ye brutish among the people;
And ye fools, when will ye understand?
He that planted the ear, shall He not hear?
He that formed the eye, shall He not see?
12
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
He that instructed nations, shall not He correct,
Even He that teacheth man knowledge?
The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man,
That they are vanity.
Happy is the man whom Thou instructest, O Lord,
And teachest out of Thy law;
That Thou mayest give him rest from the days of
evil,
Until the pit he digged for the wicked.
For the Lord will not cast off His people,
Neither will He forsake His inheritance.
For right shall return unto justice,
And all the upright in heart shall follow it.
Who will rise up for me against the evildoers?
Who will stand up for me against the workers of
iniquity?
Unless the Lord hath been my help,
My soul had soon dwelt in silence.
If I say: *My foot slippeth’,
Thy mercy, O Lord, holdeth me up.
When my cares are many within me,
Thy comforts delight my soul.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
13
Shall the seat of wickedness have fellowship with
Thee,
Which frameth mischief by statute?
They gather themselves together against the soul
of the righteous,
And condemn innocent blood.
But the Lord hath been my high tower,
And my God the rock of my refuge,
And He hath brought upon them their own ini¬
quity,
And will cut them off in their own evil;
The Lord our God will cut them off.
O come, let us sing unto the Lord;
Let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiv¬
ing,
Let us shout for joy unto Him with Psalms.
For the Lord is a great God,
And a great King above all gods.
14
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Psalm for Thursday Morning
s.
For the Leader; upon the Gittith, of Asaph.
Sing aloud unto God our strength;
Shout unto the God of Jacob.
Take up the melody, and sound the timbrel,
The sweet harp with the psaltry.
Blow the horn at the new moon,
At the full moon of our feast-day.
For it is a statute for Israel,
An ordinance of the God of Jacob.
He appointed it in Joseph for a testimony,
When he went forth against the land of Egypt.
The speech of one that I knew not did I hear;
I removed his shoulder from the burden;
His hands were freed from the basket.
Thou didst call in trouble, and I rescued thee;
I answered thee in the secret place of tnunder;
I proved thee at the waters of Meribah.
Hear, O my people, I will admonish thee;
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
15
O Israel, if thou wouldst hearken unto Me!
There shall no strange god be in thee;
Neither shalt thou worship any foreign god,
I am the Lord thy God,
Who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt;
Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
But My people hearkened not to My voice;
And Israel would none of Me.
So I let them go after the stubbornness of their
heart,
That they might walk in their own counsels.
Oh that My people would hearken unto Me,
That Israel would walk in My ways!
I would soon subdue their enemies,
And turn My hand against their adversaries.
The haters of the Lord should dwindle away be¬
fore Him;
And their punishment should endure forever.
They should also be fed with the fat of wheat;
And with honey out of the rock would I satisfy
thee.
16
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Psalm for Friday Morning .
6 .
The Lord reigneth; He is clothed in majesty;
The Lord is clothed, Fie hath girded Himself with
strength;
Yea, the world is established, that it cannot be
moved.
Thy throne is established of old;
Thou art from everlasting.
The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice;
The floods lift up their roaring.
Above the many voices of many waters,
The mighty breakers of the sea,
The Lord on high is mighty.
Thy testimonies are very sure,
Holiness becometh Thy house,
O Lord, for evermore.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
17
Psalm for Sabbath Morning .
7.
A Psalm, a Song, for the Sabbath day.
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,
And to sing praises unto Thy name, O Most High;
To declare Thy loving kindness in the morning,
And Thy faithfulness in the night seasons,
With an instrument of ten strings, and with the
psaltery;
With a solemn sound upon the harp.
For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy
work;
I will exult in the works of Thy hands.
How great are Thy works, O Lord!
Thy thoughts are very deep.
A brutish man knoweth not,
Neither doth a fool understand this.
When the wicked spring up, as the grass,
And when all the workers of iniquity do flourish;
It is that they may be destroyed for ever.
18
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
But Thou, O Lord, art on high for evermore.
For, lo, Thine enemies, O Lord,
For, lo, Thine enemies shall perish;
All the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
But my horn hast thou exalted like the horn of
the wild-ox;
I am anointed with rich oil.
Mine eyes also hath gazed on them that lie in wait
for me,
Mine ears have heard my desire of the evildoers
that rise up against me.
The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree;
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Planted in the house of the Lord,
They shall flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall still bring forth fruit in old age;
They shall be full of sap and richness;
To declare that the Lord is upright,
My rock, in whom there is no unrighteousness.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
19
MORNING PRAYER
1. Lord of the Universe! In Thy hand is the
fate of all living, and Thou art the source of all
life; the whole world proclaims Thy glory, and
no human mind can comprehend Thy greatness or
Thy works; the sun and the moon and the stars;
the seas and mountains; the trees and the flowers,
the grass and the herbs, all sprang forth at Thy
command. Thou, in Thine Infinite wisdom, hast
also created man out of the dust of the earth, and
hast breathed into his nostrils a breath of life, and
hast endowed him with a soul. To him hast Thou
given dominion over the rest of the creatures of
the world, and him hast Thou charged to reason
out the purposes of his being. I know that I stand
before Thee in my unworthiness, and declare be¬
fore Thee my faith in Thy wisdom. How rejoiced
am I to be able to give this day full expression to
my thoughts! Thou art, indeed, my Father in
heaven. To Thee I can pour out my soul. What
am I, what is my life, what is my righteousness, my
love, my mercy, in comparison to Thine! O God!
Thou hast entrusted into my care the sweet burden
of bringing up my children. Grant mf supplica-
20
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
tion that I be able to bring them up in the path
of righteousness; to love and fear Thee; to observe
Thy Torah; to serve Thee with all their heart and
soul. Give me, O Lord, the strength and the
wisdom to be able to perform my duties cheer¬
fully; to conquer all evil within me, and to give ex¬
pression only to words of wisdom, loving-kindness
and charity; to be able to protect the less fortun¬
ate than I, with works of charity and deeds of
righteousness. Shield, I pray Thee, my good and
true husband, who now is on his daily duty to win
bread, and to maintain our home in godliness and
purity; grant him his desire; bless his works; re¬
turn him to me in happiness. Give, I pray Thee,
the power of understanding to my children that
they may follow Thy paths, and be a crown of
glory to their father and myself, and true servants
unto Thee, Amen.
Daily Scriptural Reading.
2. And it shall come to pass, if ye shall heark¬
en diligently unto My commandments which I
command you this day, to love the Lord your God,
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
21
and to serve Him with all your heart and with all
your soul, that I will give the rain of your land
in its season, the former rain and the latter rain,
that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine,
and thy oil. And I will give grass in thy fields
for thy cattle, and thou shalt eat and be satisfied.
Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be de¬
ceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods and
worship them; and the anger of the Lord be kind¬
led against you, and He shut up the heaven, so that
there shall be no rain, and the ground shall not
yield her fruit; and ye perish quickly from off the
good land which the Lord giveth you. Therefore
shall ye lay up these My words in your heart and
in your soul; and ye shall bind them for a sign
upon your hand, and they shall be for frontlets
between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your
children, talking of them, when thou sittest in thy
house, and when thou walkest by the way, and
when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt write them upon the door-posts of
thy house, and upon thy gates; that your days may
be multiplied, and the days of your children, upon
the land which the Lord swore unto your fathers
to give them, as the days of the heavens above the
earth.
22
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
3. And God spoke all these words, saying:
I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out
of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor
any manner of likeness, of anything that is in hea¬
ven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that
is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not bow
down unto them, nor serve them; for I the-Lord thy
God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth
generation of them that hate Me; and showing
mercy unto the thousandth generation of them that
love Me and keep My commandments.
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy
God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him
guiltless that taketh His name in vain.
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Six days thou shalt labor, and do all thy work; but
the seventh day is a sabbath unto the Lord thy
God, in it thou shalt not do any manner of work,
thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man¬
servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor
thy stranger that is within thy gates; for in six days
the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
23
that in them is, and rested on the seventh day;
wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and
hallowed it.
Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days
may be long upon the land which the Lord thy
God giveth thee.
Thou shalt not murder.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy
neighbor.
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, thou
shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man¬
servant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his
ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s.
4. Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the
Lord is One. And thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and
with all thy might. And these words, which I
command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart;
and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy chil¬
dren, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in
thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and
24
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thy
hand, and they shall be for frontlets between thine
eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the door¬
posts of thy house, and upon thy gates.
Meditation .
5. Merciful Father I I beseech Thee to grant
me that strength and fortitude which will enable
me to carry on the task of this day in good cheer,
in joy and in happiness. I know my limitations
and shortcomings, my inability to stand alone and
my want of true knowledge. Teach me to know
Thee; enlighten my path with Thy wisdom, so
that I might not be grappling in the dark as do
the blind; open my eyes to behold Thy ways so
that I might learn of them, and follow them;
broaden out my view of life, so that I be not led in
the by-ways of narrow-mindedness, selfishness,
greed, envy, jealousy, hatred and revenge; fill my
soul with contentment, so that my station in life be
sweet to me, and bring to me that happiness for
which I crave so much. I know that I am un¬
worthy of even a single blessing from Thee, O
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
25
Lord; I am sinful, and wanting in the qualities
which should be mine as a wife and mother in Is¬
rael. Forgive my transgressions, wipe out my sin,
blot out every stain of my character, and grant me
the courage necessary to carry on a worthy exist-
ense on this earth, so that I be included among
the righteous mothers in Israel who have a share
in the world-to-come. I pray Thee, let no tempta¬
tion come into my life; grant that my house be
free from sickness, want, and disgrace. May this
day be unto me a happy one; may it shine with Thy
blessings upon my family, Amen.
A Psalm of David
6 .
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul;
He guideth me in straight paths for His name’s
sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the sha¬
dow of death,
I will fear no evil,
26
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
For Thou art with me;
Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me,
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence
of mine enemies;
Thou hast anointed my head with oil; my cup run¬
neth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the
days of my life;
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
THE SABBATH AND HOLIDAY
LIGHTS
1. On the eve of every Sabbath, about eight¬
een minutes before sunset, the women in Israel
light candles, as a religious rite, as a precept given
distinctly to Jewish women. At least two candles
must be lit. The sacredness, the enlightment, the
culture and the spirituality of the home are in
the keeping of the woman who presides over it.
A woman may make her home holy, godly and
pure, if she but wills it so. The Sabbath and holi¬
days in Israel are received by us with as much
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
17
ceremony, preparedness, sacredness, good cheer
and joy, as the wife and mother is willing, or able
to bestow. When the Sabbath meals are ready and
the house is decorated, in expectation of a welcome
guest—the Sabbath or the holiday—which brings
rest, peace, contentment and happiness—it is a
demonstration of great joy, by the lady of the
house. She lights candles to the glory of the Sab¬
bath, or the holiday, and receives the welcome
guest most ceremoniously. You can not see the
Sabbath. You can not see the holiday. But you
know that the Sabbath, or the holiday, is in your
home. You feel it. You live it. It is part of your
soul. A genuine part of your spiritual make-up.
The home then becomes a real temple, the table a
real altar, and the candles a real eternal light.
Grace the Sabbath, or the holiday. Do not receive
it informally. The best you have, dress in; the
most precious jewels you have, wear them; the best
humor you have, use it; the most winning smile
you are able to command, give it—the Sabbath
comes, the Sabbath enters—the holiday comes, the
holiday enters.
2. When the Sabbath candles are lit, the fol¬
lowing benediction is pronounced: Blessed art
Thou, O Lord, Our God, King of the Universe
28
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
who sanctified us with His commandments, and
commanded us to light the Sabbath candles. Chil¬
dren, standing near their mother, at the end of the
benediction, say: Amen.
3. On the eve of New Year (Rosh ha-Sha-
nah) : Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God, King
of the universe, who sanctified us with His com¬
mandments, and commanded us to light the can¬
dles of Rosh ha-Shanah (New Year).
4. On the eve of Yom Kippur say: Blessed art
Thou, O Lord, our God, King of the universe,
who sanctified us with His commandments, and
commanded us to light the candles of Yom ha-Kip-
purim (the Day of Atonement).
5. On Sukkot, say: Blessed art Thou, O Lord,
our God, King of the universe, who sanctified us
with His commandments, and commanded us to
light the holiday candles.
6. On Passover, say: Blessed art Thou, O
Lord, our God, King of the universe, who sancti¬
fied us with His commandments, and commanded
us to light the holiday candles.
7. On Pentecost, say: Blessed art Thou, O
Lord, our God, King of the universe, who sancti-
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
29
fied us with His commandments and commanded
us to light the holiday candles.
8. On the eve of each and every one of the
holidays enumerated above, the following addi¬
tional benediction is pronounced: Blessed art
Thou, O Lord, our God, King of the universe, who
hast kept us in life, and hast preserved us, and
enabled us to reach this season.
9. After the candles are lit, both on the eve of
Sabbath or holiday, the following prayer is deli¬
vered :
May it be Thy will, O Lord our God, and God
of our fathers, that the Temple be speedily rebuilt
in our days, and grant our portion in Thy Torah.
And there we will serve with awe, as in the days
of old, and as in ancient years. Then shall the of¬
fering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto
the Lord, as in the days old, and as in ancient
years.
Meditation After Lighting the Sabbath Candles .
10. Lord of the universe! May my lighting
of the candles, which is a precept singularly mine,
30
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
be as acceptable to Thee as the lighting of the
lights in the Temple by the High Priest. “Thy
word is a light unto my feet, and a lamp unto my
path.” May the eyes of mine and of all the chil¬
dren of Israel shine in the holiness of Thy Torah.
May the beauty of the holiness of the Sabbath be
an inspiration to my family, that each and every
member thereof should find it a treasure of hap¬
piness and contentment; may that sweet rest which
this Sabbath day brings unto me and mine continue
as a blessing throughout the coming week that it
be not disturbed by anger, irritation, strife, sorrow,
or unhappiness. May the day of sacredness which
I now have ushered in, bring to my soul that tran¬
quility for which I long, and that answer to my
prayer which I desire. May the holy time which
I am to enjoy bring me and mine that spiritual
happiness which is all Thine own, and which only
those who believe in Thee are privileged to partake
of. I pray Thee, grant Thy people salvation, and
may a Redeemer come to Zion, in my day, and in
the days of my family, and in the days of all Is¬
rael, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
31
Meditation After Lighting of Candles on the
Eve of Rosh ha-Shanah .
11. Blessed be Thou, O Lord, God of our
fathers! The earth is Thine, the heavens and the
seas Thou hast created; all life comes from Thee.
In Thy hands is the seal of every one’s fate,
whether it be that of the moth or of the mightiest
ruler. None among the children of man can lift
his smallest finger, or make the least movement
with any of his limbs, without Thy will. Life and
death, and the mysteries of them both, lodge with
Thee. Thy children upon earth know not the hid¬
den purposes of their being on earth. Whence they
came, and whitherto they go. They are conscious
of only the natural phenomena of this life. They
feel pain; they crave for happiness; they suffer
when sick; and enjoy when in good health; they
obey the laws inborn in them; they follow the in¬
clinations natural to them; they love life; they
struggle for it, suffer for it; they grapple in the
dark for the mysterious things which they know
to be but which being they can not fathom. I, Thy
servant (pronounce your name), daughter of
(pronounce your father’s name) have now per¬
formed a duty, a special precept with which I am
32
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
charged as a daughter in Israel, to light the can¬
dles in honor of Rosh ha-Shanah, and to bless
Thee for having sanctified Thy people with Thy
commandments. On this day, Thou art sitting in
judgment. We all are entering Thy Presence
alive. Only Thou knowest who among us will
continue to live. I pray Thee have mercy upon
me and my family, and upon all Israel, and upon
all mankind. Judge not in accordance with what
they should do, but in accordance with their ignor¬
ance as to what to do. Their bodies are gross,
their souls dwell in their gross bodies, which are
dark. Human inclination follows the path of
temptation; the body is stronger than soul; its
demands are more pronounced, more after the
gross things which this life affords, and with
which it is surrounded. I pray Thee, bless us all
with Thy light, so that we may see our soul’s path
as clearly as we see the path of nature around us.
Give us that light which is all Thine own, and
which Thou has manifested to Thy people Israel
by giving them Thy Torah. Incline our hearts to
love Thy Torah, which leads us in a path of light,
and chases away the shadows of darkness. I pray
Thee, O Lord, inscribe this day for life Thy peo¬
ple Israel, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
33
Meditation After Lighting the Candles on
Yom Kippur Eve.
12. My God and the God of My fathers! To
Thee alone can I reveal my shortcomings. Our
sages of blessed memory taught us, that the chil¬
dren of Israel need no mediator, that our contrite
souls and repenting hearts we may pour out before
Thee by our own lips, and that Thou keepest open
the gates of tears, of mercy and of repentance for
all supplicants. I have sinned; my heart is in pain
because of my sin; my head is bent, and my eyes
are dimmed. I know not how to approach Thy
Throne in supplication. My wisdom is limited,
my knowledge wanting, and my understanding
short. I can not defend my sins; they are too
many, and I am too weak. But Thy mercy is so
great that it fills the universe. Thou, O Lord,
knowest that my sins did not come because of
spite, not because of a rebellious spirit, but be¬
cause of my gross ignorance. Our prophets, blessed
be their memory! were averse to enumerating the
sins, and detailing them. But my soul cries aloud
to Thee for forgiveness for all of my sins, and for
all of the sins of every member of my family. May
it be Thy will, O Lord, God of my fathers, on this
34
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Day of Atonement, to place me in a corner of light,
and not in a corner of darkness, so that my heart
be not in pain, and so that my eyes be not dimmed.
For the sake of Thy mercy I pray for forgiveness.
Strengthen me, O Lord, that I may be able to carry
out Thy commandments to abstain from food and
drink this night and tomorrow’s day. I come be¬
fore Thee with a repentant heart; turn me not
away. For all Thy blessing till now, I praise and
glorify Thy name. Grant me life and health so
that I may continue to carry on the work of Thy
handmaids, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel and Leah,
Amen.
Prayer After Lighting of Candles on the Eve
of Passover (Pesah).
13. O Lord, God of my fathers! Thou didst
bring forth Thy people Israel from the land of
bondage, and hast given them liberty. Thy people
is now commemorating the many wonders Thou
didst wrought upon the Egyptians before they let
Thy people go forth out of their land. I beseech
Thee free my soul from the bondage of sin. Purify
it even as I did purify my home from everything
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
35
which is leaven, Grant me, I pray Thee that iree-
dom and liberty which will enable me to serve
Thee without hindrance. Let not the evil, which
is in me from my birth, enslave me. Let not the
Pharaoh of my heart drive away the Moses of my
soul; let the Aaron of my conscience make peace
between my heart and my head. I greet this Feast
of Liberty with a heart full of happiness that I
was preserved and am in life to witness the truth
of Thy Torah, and of Thy people. I am happy to
be counted in among them. Mayest Thou, O Lord,
as of old perform miracles and redeem all op¬
pressed from the hand of the tyrant, all unjustly
imprisoned from their dungeons, and all burdens
from the minds of Thy people so that all be able
to serve Thee in love. Give me health and strength,
O Lord, that I may continue to serve Thee in joy
and in happiness, and proclaim Thy praise and
glory for ever, Amen.
Meditation After Lighting of Candles on the Eve
of Shebuot ( Pentecost)
14. Lord of the earth! Our sages of yore de¬
clared that the wickedness of the evil-doers cause
Thy glory to withdraw itself from this earth and
36
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
to ascend to the seventh heaven, but that the right¬
eousness of the saintly men brought Thy glory
down to earth, upon Sinai, even as it is said in
Thy Torah: “And the Lord came down upon
mount Sinai.” I thank Thee for having kept me
in life to be able to light the holiday candles on
the eve of the anniversary of Thy revelation upon
Sinai. It is with a heart full of happiness that I
now realize Thy wonders. Thou dwellest on
high, and, yet, Thy Providence reacheth the ends
of the earth to give every living creature its sus¬
tenance. I pray Thee to implant in my heart love
and affection for Thy holy Torah, which is the
source of all wisdom, the fountain of pure belief,
the joy of the believer, the hope of the sinner and
the salvation of all mankind. Glorify Thy people
Israel; give them of Thy wisdom to understand the
task they have undertaken when they stood trembl¬
ing beneath Sinai. Implant in their hearts the
strength they stand in need of to stay the hand
of the persecutor. Endow my children and my
children’s children with a spirit of steadfastness to
remain true to Thy holy Torah, to Thee and to
Thy people, for ever, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
37
PURITY
1. “Then shall she (the woman in her menses)
be in a state of separation seven days” (Leviticus,
15.19). The seven purifying days begin when the
catamenia ceases.
2. “And if a woman have (menses) out of the
time of her separation” (Leviticus, 15.25). If the
irregularity continues three successive days, the
rules of ordinary catamenial seven clear days must
be followed; but if it occurs during one, or even
two days, one clear day’s separation suffices. Such
irregularity is possible during the eleven days fol¬
lowing regular catamenia.
3. “If a woman have.... born a male child,
etc. (Letivicus, 12.2-5). The purification period
after confinement, a woman has forty days’ time
with male child, the minimum being seven days;
and eighty days with a female child, the minimum
being fourteen days. But in both instances it is es¬
sential to know that the beginning of the seven day
purification period is only after catamenia ceases.
38
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
4. Purification in Israel is a ritual, a religious
law of the most sacred character. It has to do
with the very vitality of the Jewish people as a
race, and with Judaism as a religion. It is funda¬
mental, and no substitute whatever can be em¬
ployed to replace Tebilah in a Mikvah—immer¬
sion in a water-font, connected to either the ocean,
spring, or river, where at least forty measures
(saohs) of water be gathered.
5. The waters of all the rivers of the earth,
if it be not a real Mikvah, or the ocean, or lake,
or river, and if no immersion takes place, will not
restore ritual purification to a woman. This pre¬
cept was given to the woman in Israel with the
singular purpose of keeping the generations pure,
of preserving that which is most essential in Jewish
life, and of removing the dross from the grosser
things in life and leave the pure gold thereof to
shine as an example to all those who long to see
real morality on earth.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
39
Prayer Before Tebilah.
6. Holy Father in heaven! Thou hast chosen
Thy people Israel as a peculiar people from
among all nations, because we trace direct descent
from Thy beloved Abraham, and Thou hast
charged Thy people saying: ‘‘Thus shall ye separ¬
ate the children of Israel from their uncleanli¬
ness”; Thou didst also charge Thy people say¬
ing: “Ye shall be holy; for I the Lord your God
am holy,” from which I Thy humble servant infer
that if we be not holy and pure we can not be Thy
people. To Thee, O Lord, I now come with a sup¬
plication: I have performed my duty, a precept of
Thine given to me as a woman. Thou knowest
my trials and tribulations, the heavy burden which
rests upon me; I pray Thee ease my lot; grant me
strength and courage to bear my share of life’s
hardships in happiness and not in distress. Few
are the moments of my joy, many are the hours
of my sorrow; grant me, O Lord, that sweetness of
disposition, that fortitude which will turn my sor¬
rows into sources of joy; bless me with the heaven¬
ly dew so that my garden be not sterile, and that
the fruit therein blossom forth to enrich with their
fragrance this earth, and the sweet savor thereof
40
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
reach out to Thine own habitation. May my pray¬
er be acceptable unto Thee, O Lord my God, and
God of my fathers, even as Thou didst accept the
prayers of Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah and
Hannah, Amen.
Before Immersion the Following Benediction
Is Delivered :
7. Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King
of the universe, who sanctified us with His com¬
mandments, and commanded us concerning Tebi-
lah (Immersion).
HAL AH (Heave-Offering Cake)
1. “Of the first of your doughs ye shall set
apart a cake for a heaveoffering” (Numbers,
15.20).
The commandment refers to one of the sources
of income of the priests in Israel, who had no share
in the land, and who devoted all of their time to
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
41
the service of the Temple of God, and to His chos¬
en people. Even as the Rabbis do in modern
times; they minister to the needs of their temples
and synagogues, and devote their lives to the study
and instruction of Judaism.
2. In Palestinian times, every family, as well
as every public baker, who kneeded a dough for
bread, was obliged to give, in case of a private
family, about one twenty-fourth part of the dough,
and in case of a public baker, about one forty-
eighth part of the dough, to the priests as part of
their just due.
3. This institution, the principle of which
was to support the scholars who were in the serv¬
ice of God and His people, never faded out with
the destruction of the Second Temple from the
homes of Israel. The commandment was entrusted
to the women in Israel, to keep it alive, to trans¬
mit it to posterity. The commandment is known
in Hebrew as “Terumat Halah,” and is the third
specific precept which Jewish women are observ¬
ing. When a Jewish woman prepares bread, that
is when she has it ready for the oven, she performs
this ritual: She takes a piece of the dough, the size
of an ordinary biscuit, and throws it in the fire;
while doing it she delivers this benediction.
42
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
“Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of
the universe, who sanctified us with His command¬
ments, and commanded us to separate Halah”
(heave-offering-cake).
Of course, there is not now either Temple or
Priest; the home is not taxed with the duty of giv¬
ing actual dough to the ministers of God; but the
beautiful kernel is here; the home is reminded of
a glorious past, of a hope for a gliorious future,
when the dough will be kneeded from grain grown
on the hills of Judea, when priest and prophet,
poet and scientist will once more enrich the uni¬
verse with the treasures and blessings from Zion.
Besides, it reminds the home that in diaspora we
also have ministers of God, students of the Torah,
and servants of the people of Israel.
4. It is a beautiful custom in Israel through¬
out the Diaspora, that every home is provided with
home-made bread for the Sabbaths and holidays.
The ceremony of “taking” Halah, then, becomes of
great significance—particularly to the daughters
in the home. It actually adds “good taste” to the
bread. Try it, and you shall find therein the
“taste of Sabbath”, the “taste of holiday” (Yom-
Tov). Even the very shape of the loaves have a
history, and a special tale to tell, if they could
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
43
speak. Since they can not, read up a bit on Jew¬
ish history and you will learn, perhaps, much
more than the present-day loaf could tell you.
Picture in your mind the “Haman-taschen”—re¬
member after whom it was named; what story it
has to tell! Ask the good and blessed grand¬
mothers, who remember and know everything
about it from “home”; they will tell you the shape
of the loaf for Sukkot, for She’buot, for Rosh-ha-
Shanah, for the eve of Yom Kippur, as well as for
every Sabbath. Ask them now, before it will be
too late; they are leaving us now very rapidly;
soon there will be no one to tell you; and you will
miss it so much, so much!
5. Then, when you learn all about it, you will
cheerfully leave the kitchen for a minute or two,
and you will spend a while in privacy, between
yourself and your Maker, and deliver this prayer:
6. God of Israel! I have done my duty; I
separated a cake as Halah, and, as we have no
priests whom to give it, I cast it in the fire, so as
not to partake of a share which is rightly not mine.
Being but a woman, and human, my heart is filled
now with envy and jealousy—a kind of envy and
jealousy, which I pray Thou wilt not consider sin¬
ful in me. My very soul feels it. How happy were
44
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
my sisters of yore! The very dough they kneeded
was a source of inspiration to them. Their hus¬
bands tilled the ground of the Promised Land,
there, where Thine Eyes constantly watch; every
grain grew in sacred ground; it was in Israel’s
land, in the land of my people ;the soil upon which
Thy Shekinah rested, yielded to the touch of my
sisters of old, and brought forth grain and fruit,
milk and honey, meat and wine. Thy Being was
in everything which was from, in, and upon Eretz
Yisrael. How far are we now from Thee, O Lord,
our King! Scattered and peeled are Thy people
throughout the lands; but fragments of the ancient
tribes are left. I pray to Thee, restore the ancient
glory of Zion, make the world fit for a universal
Zion, so that selfishness and greed be no more the
curse of mankind, but instead let every one un¬
derstand the unselfishness of the commandment of
Terumat Halah, that of actually giving to another,
part of your own food, and may a Redeemer come
to Zion, speedily, in my day and in the days of all
Israel, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
45
PSALM FOR A PREGNANT WOMAN
1 .
A prayer of the afflicted, when he fainteth, and
poureth out his complaint before the Lord.
O Lord, hear my prayer,
And let my cry come unto Thee.
Hide not Thy face from me in the day of my dis¬
tress;
Incline Thine ear unto me;
In the day when I call answer me speedily.
For my days are consumed like smoke,
And my bones are burned as a hearth.
My heart is smitten like grass, and withered;
For I forgot to eat my bread.
By reason of the voice of my sighing
My bones cleave to my flesh.
I am like a pelican of the wilderness;
I am become as an owl of the waste places.
I watch, and am become
Like a sparrow that is alone upon the housetop.
46
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
For I have eaten ashes like bread,
And mingled my drink with weeping.
My days are like a lengthening shadow;
And I am withered like grass.
But Thou, O Lord, sittest enthroned for ever;
And Thy name is unto all generations.
From heaven did the Lord behold the earth;
To hear the groaning of the prisoner;
I say: ‘O my God, take me not away in the midst
of my days,
Thou whose years endure throughout all genera¬
tions.
The children of Thy servants shall dwell securely,
And their seed shall be established before Thee.
Meditation .
2 .
O Lord, My God: I am too humbled and
broken in spirit to offer a thanksgiving unto Thee,
as I should, for Thy loving kindness in blessing
me with that unborn life I feel within me. It is
flesh of my flesh, bone of my bone; a part of my
very being. Thou, O Lord, didst create woman
to be the life-giving instrument to the generations
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
47
of mankind. In Thy wisdom, and through the
fault of human shortcoming, Thou didst ordain
that woman’s pain in bringing forth a child shall
be greatly multiplied. Be gracious unto me, to
lessen the pain of my travail, and grant that I bring
forth this unborn child with mine and its life
spared. I accept motherhood as the most sacred
of Thy blessings; my loneliness is but the fulfill¬
ment of my most sacred duty and my most cher¬
ished hope. I pray Thee let my house be filled
with the heavenly light of a new life, and not be
dimmed by the sorrow of a life lost to this earth.
Bless my home, my family, and the unborn babe
within me, whose life I now feel, and am part of;
bless all mothers; remove sorrow from their coun¬
tenance, and cause the glory of Thy face to shine
upon all mankind, Amen.
Psalm For a Mother After Childbirth.
3.
I will give Thee thanks with my whole heart,
In the presence of the mighty will I sing praises
unto Thee.
48
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
I will bow down toward Thy holy temple,
And give thanks unto Thy name for Thy mercy
and for Thy truth;
For Thou hast magnified Thy word above all Thy
name.
In the day that I called, Thou didst answer me;
Thou didst encourage me in my soul with strength.
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou
quickenest me;
Thou stretchest Thy hand against the wrath of
mine enemies,
And Thy right hand doth save me.
The Lord will accomplish that which concerneth
me;
Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever;
Forsake not the work of Thine own hands.
Prayer.
4.
Heavenly Father: I, Thy humble servant
(pronounce your name) daughter of (pronounce
the name of your mother), who am I, what is my
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
49
life, my mercy, my righteousness, my salvation, my
strength, in comparison to Thine, to come before
Thee with words of thanksgiving, praise and ador¬
ation? I am blood and flesh; my soul which Thou
hast implanted in my lowly and humble body is un¬
able, for want of understanding, to give adequate
expression to my thoughts, which now overwhelm
me. But my feelings overflow my heart, my soul
and my very being. Thou, O Lord, in Thy mercy,
gavest to me and my husband a child, a being now
most helpless, but capable, in the process of time,
to achieve greatness upon this earth. I pray to
Thee: guide it; let Thy Shekinah shield it from
sickness and disease, from mishap and pain. Grant
me, O Lord, the strength to mother it rightly and
righteously; in its blessing will I, its mother, be
blessed; its happiness, health and progress in life
will be my only reward for the trials and pains
and sorrow I endured till now for its sake. Re¬
ceive my prayer, as Thou wouldst an offering in
Thy holy temple in Jerusalem. Bless my home
with health and happiness and contentment, so
that all the members of my family be able to serve
Thee in joy, Amen.
50
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
SCRIPTURAL SELECTION AT THE
BAR MITZVAH OF A SON
1. For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath
granted me my petition which I asked of Him;
therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long
as he liveth he is lent to the Lord.
And Hannah prayed, and said:
My heart exulteth in the Lord,
My horn is exalted in the Lord;
My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies;
Because I rejoice in my salvation.
There is none holy as the Lord;
There is none beside Thee;
Niether is there any rock like our God.
And in that day thou shalt say:
T will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord;
For though Thou wast angry with me,
Thine anger is turned away, and Thou comfort-
est me.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
51
Behold, God is my salvation;
I will trust, and will not be afraid;
For God the Lord is my strength and song;
And He is become my salvation’.
Therefore with joy shall ye draw water
Out of the wells of salvation.
And in that day shall ye say:
‘Give thanks unto the Lord, proclaim His name,
Declare His doings among the peoples,
Make mention that His name is exalted.
Sing unto the Lord; for He hath done gloriously;
This is made known in all the earth.
Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion;
For great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst
of thee’.
Supplication
2. Lord of the universe! I acknowledge in
humility the blessing Thou hast bestowed upon me
and my husband, in preserving us and in keeping
us in life till this day, to bring our son (name him)
52
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
before the congregation of Israel as a true son of
Thy commandments. I am this day a happy mo¬
ther. Even like Hannah, mother of Samuel, Thy
servant, I bring my son to Thy service. In pain
did I bring him forth to life; great was my burden
of care in his infancy and childhood. I acknowl¬
edge with a heart full of gratitude Thy help. In
every hour of distress, it was my belief in Thee
which strengthened me, and gave me the patience
to endure all for the sake of my dear son. I (pro¬
nounce your name) daughter of (pronounce your
mother’s name) am come this day to supplicate
Thee for the sake of my son. His father and I gave
him his body; but Thou, O Lord, didst give him
his soul. And him, I beseech Thee, in his endea¬
vors to keep his soul pure, holy and godly; help
him in every hour of distress; answer him when¬
ever he will pray to Thee; guide his footsteps that
he may not stumble; remove temptation from in
front of him; bestow Thy blessings upon him this
day, and for evermore, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
53
Psalm When a Daughter Becomes Twelve Years
And One Day Old .
3. For the Leader; upon the gittith. A Psalm
of the sons of Korah.
How lovely are Thy tabernacle, O Lord of hosts!
My soul yearneth, yea, even pineth for the courts
of the Lord;
My heart and my flesh sing for joy unto the living
God.
Yea, the sparrow hath found a house,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young;
Thine altars, O Lord of hosts,
My King, and my God—.
Happy are they that dwell in Thy house,
They are ever praising Thee. Selah.
Passing through the valley of Baca they make it a
place of springs;
Yea, the early rain clothed it with blessings.
They go from strength to strength;
Every one of them appearath before God in Zion.
54
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God af Jacob, Selah.
(Both mother and daughter may say the above.)
Psalm at The Marriage of a Son.
4.
Hallelujah.
Happy is the man that feareth the Lord,
That delighted greatly in His commandments.
His seed shall be mighty upon earth;
The generation of the upright shall be blessed.
Wealth and riches are in his house;
And his merit endureth for ever.
Unto the upright He shineth as a light in the
darkness,
Gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
Well is it with the man that dealth graciously and
lendeth,
That ordereth his affairs rightfully.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
55
For he shall never be moved;
The righteous shall be had in everlasting remem¬
brance.
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings;
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
His heart is established, he shall not be afraid,
Until he gaze upon his adversaries.
He hath scattered abroad, he hath given to the
needy;
His righteousness endureth for ever;
His horn shall be exalted in honor.
The wicked shall see, and be vexed;
He shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away;
The desire of the wicked shall perish.
Prayer
5. Sovereign of the universe, Lord of the
earth! Thy servant (ponounce your name) daugh¬
ter of (pronounce your father's name) feels her¬
self too humble, overmuch unworthy to offer
thanks unto Thee for this day of joy and happi-
56
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
ness, which is all mine. I know Thou art en¬
throned high above mortals, and yet, Thy ever-
watchful Providence is shielding Thy children on
earth. This knowledge gives me the courage to
approach Thy Throne of Glory, and implore Thee
for the sake of my son (name him), who is this day
taking unto himself to wife (name the bride)
daughter of (name her father). Shower Thy bles¬
sings upon them; shield them from evil; protect
them against their enemies; guide their footsteps;
lead them not in the path of temptation, envy, jeal¬
ousy, or hatred. O Lord! On this day my son for-
saketh the home of his father, which is also my
home, and, in accordance with Thy expressed com¬
mandment, is going to cleave to his wife. Remem¬
ber to reward him for all of his goodness, for his
obedience, for his devotion to his father and to
me. May my new daughter bring along with her
the blessings of Rebekah, and the love and devo¬
tion of Ruth; may they be united in a happy hour,
determined to do Thy bidding, to observe Thy
commandments, and to follow in the path of the
righteous so that the generations in Israel, Thy
chosen people, be continued to the glory of Thy
Kingdom, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
57
Psalm at the Marriage of a Daughter
6. For the Leader; upon Shoshannim; (a
Psalm) of the sons of Korah, Maschil. A song of
loves.
My heart overflows with a goodly matter;
I say: ‘My work is concerning a king’;
My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
Thou art fairer than the children of man;
Grace is poured upon thy lips;
Therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.
Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O mighty one,
Thy glory and thy majesty.
And in thy majesty prosper, ride on,
In behalf of truth and meekness and righteousness;
And let thy right hand teach thee tremendous
things.
Thine arrows are sharp—
The people fall under thee—
They sink into the heart of the king’s enemies.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Thy throne given of God is for ever and ever;
A sceptre of equity is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated wicked¬
ness;
Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee
With the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
Myrrh, and aloes, and cassia are all thy garments;
Out of ivory palaces stringed instruments have
made thee glad.
King’s daughters are among thy favorites;
At thy right hand doth stand the queen in gold of
Ophir.
Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline
thine ear;
Forget also thine own people, and thy father’s
house;
So shall the king desire thy beauty;
For he is thy lord; and do homage unto him.
And, O daughter of Tyre, the richest of the people
shall entreat thy favor with a gift.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
59
All glorious is the king’s daughter within the
palace;
Her raiment is of chequer work in wrought with
gold.
She shall be led unto the king on richly woven
stuff;
The virgins her companions in her train being
brought unto thee.
They shall be led with gladness and rejoicing;
They shall enter into the king’s palace.
Instead of thy father’s shall be thy son’s,
Whom thou shalt make princes in all the land.
I will make thy name to be remembered in all
generations;
Therefore shall the peoples praise thee for ever
and ever.
Prayer
7. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, king of the
universe who preserved me and kept me in life till
this season of my happiness; a happiness truly my
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
own, only as a mother can feel. My daughter
(name her) is this day becoming the wife of (name
the groom) son of (name his father). I pray
Thee, O god, to shield her from all evil. Take
her under the protection of the wings of Thy She-
kinah. Give her grace, and cause Thy face to
shine upon her, so that whosoever will see her may
recognize in her the true holiness of the beauty of
Israel. I beseech Thee to implant in her heart
love and affection to observe and follow Thy holy
laws and commandments, so that her home be a
sanctuary for the man of her choice, and so that
her image be solely engraved in his heart to be
faithful and true to her. Bless her with the dew of
heaven and the fat of the earth, so that her soul
and her body never be in anguish either for want of
the material things upon earth during her life
here, or for the spiritual things so essential to her
happiness and glory in the world-to-come, and to
the generations yet unborn. I pray Thee to have
the angels of peace ever stationed at the door of
my daughter’s home, so that strife may never enter
its domain. Bless her and the man of her choice
with the enlightment of Thy Torah, to the glori¬
fication of Thy people, Israel, Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
61
PSALM FOR A SICK MEMBER
IN THE FAMILY
1 .
For the Leader. A Psalm of David.
The Lord answer thee in the day of trouble;
The name of the God of Jacob set thee up on high;
Send forth thy help from the sanctuary,
And support thee out of Zion;
Receive the memorial of all thy meal-offerings;
And accept the fat of thy burnt-sacrifice; Selah.
Grant thee according to thine own heart,
And fulfill all thy counsel.
We will shout for joy in thy victory,
And in the name of our God we will set up our
standards;
The Lord fulfill all thy petitions.
Now I know that the Lord saveth His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the mighty acts of His saving right hand.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will make mention of the name of the Lord
our God.
They are bowed down and fallen;
But we are risen, and stand upright.
Save, Lord;
Let the King answer us in the day that we call.
2 .
Princes have persecuted me without a cause;
But my heart standeth in awe of Thy words.
I rejoice at Thy word,
As one that findeth great spoil.
I hate and abhor falsehood;
Thy law do I love.
Seven times a day do I praise Thee,
Because of Thy righteous ordinances.
Great peace have they that love Thy law;
And there is no stumbling for them.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
63
I have hoped for Thy salvation, O Lord,
And have done Thy commandments.
3.
My soul hath observed Thy testimonies;
And I love them exceedingly.
I have observed Thy precepts and Thy testimonies;
For all my ways are before Thee.
My soul cleaveth unto the dust;
Quicken Thou me according to Thy word.
I told of my ways, and Thou didst answer me;
Teach me Thy statutes.
Make me to understand the way of Thy precepts,
That I may talk of Thy wonderous works.
My soul melteth away for heaviness;
Sustain me according unto Thy word.
Remove from me the way of falsehood;
And grant me Thy law graciously.
I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
Thine ordinances have I set before me.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
I cleave unto Thy testimonies;
O Lord, put me not to shame.
I will run the way of Thy commandments,
For Thou dost enlarge my heart.
4.
Thy hands have made me and fashioned me;
Give me understanding, that I may learn Thy
commandments.
They that fear Thee shall see me and be glad,
Because I have hope in Thy word.
I know, O Lord, that Thy judgments are righteous,
And that in faithfulness Thou hast afflicted me.
Let, I pray Thee, Thy loving kindness be ready
to comfort me,
According to Thy promise unto Thy servant.
Let Thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may
live;
For Thy law is my delight.
Let the proud be put to shame, for they have dis¬
torted my cause with falsehood;
But I will meditate in Thy precepts.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
65
Let those that fear Thee, return unto me,
And they that know Thy testimonies.
Let my heart be undivided in Thy statutes,
In order that I may not be put to shame.
S.
I have called with my whole heart;
Answer me, O Lord;
I will keep Thy statutes.
I have called Thee, save me,
And I will observe Thy testimonies.
I rose early at dawn and cried;
I hoped in Thy word.
Mine eyes forestalled the night watches,
That I might meditate in Thy word.
Hear my voice according unto Thy loving kind¬
ness;
Quicken me, O Lord, as Thou art wont.
They draw nigh that follow after wickedness;
They are far from Thy law.
Thou art nigh, O Lord;
And all Thy commandments are truth.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Of old have I known from Thy testimonies
That Thou hast founded them for ever.
6 .
O see mine affliction, and rescue me;
For I do not forget Thy law.
Plead Thou my cause, and redeem me;
Quicken me according to Thy word.
Salvation is far from the wicked;
For they seek not Thy statutes.
Great are Thy compassions, O Lord;
Quicken me as Thou art wont.
Many are my persecutors and mine adversaries;
Yet have I not turned aside from Thy testimonies.
I beheld them that were faithless, and strove with
them;
Because they observe not Thy word.
O see how I love Thy precepts;
Quicken me, O Lord, according to Thy loving¬
kindness.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
67
The beginning of Thy word is truth;
And all Thy righteous ordinance endureth for
ever.
7.
I have done justice and righteousness;
Leave me not to mine oppressors.
Be surety for Thy servant for good;
Let not the proud oppress me.
Mine eyes fail for Thy salvation,
And for Thy righteous word.
Deal with Thy servant according unto Thy mercy,
And teach me Thy statutes.
I am Thy servant, give me understanding;
That I may know Thy testimonies
It is time for the Lord to work;
They have made void Thy law.
Therefore I love Thy commandments
Above gold, yea, above fine gold.
Therefore I esteem all Thy precepts concerning
all things to be right;
Every false way I hate.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
8 .
Remember the word unto Thy servant,
Because Thou hast made me to hope.
This is my comfort in my affliction,
That Thy word hath quickened me.
The proud have had me greatly in derision;
Yet have I not turned aside from Thy law.
I have remembered Thine ordinances which are
of old, O Lord,
And have comforted myself.
Burning indignation hath taken hold upon me,
because of the wicked
That forsake Thy law.
Thy statutes have been my songs
In the house of my pilgrimage.
T have remembered Th> name, O Lord, in the
night,
And have observed Thy law.
This I have had,
That I have kept Thy precepts.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
69
9.
Thou hast dealt well with Thy servant,
O Lord, according unto Thy word.
Teach me good discernment and knowledge;
For I have believed in Thy commandments.
Before I was afflicted, I did err;
But now I observe Thy word.
Thou art good, and doest good;
Teach me Thy statutes.
The proud have forged a lie against me;
But I with my whole heart will keep Thy precepts.
Their heart is gross like fat;
But I delight in Thy law.
It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
In order that I might learn Thy statutes.
The law of Thy mouth is better unto me
Than thousands of gold and silver.
10 .
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,
And a light unto my path.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
I have sworen, and have confirmed it,
To observe Thy righteous ordinances,
I am afflicted very much;
Quicken me, O Lord, according unto Thy word.
Accept, I beseech Thee, the freewill offerings of
my mouth, O Lord,
And teach me Thine ordinances.
My soul is continually in my hand;
Yet have I not forgotten Thy law.
The wicked have laid a snare for me;
Yet went I not astray from Thy precepts.
Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage for
ever;
For they are the rejoicing of my heart.
I have inclined my heart to perform Thy statutes,
For ever, at every step.
Prayer .
11 .
Merciful Father of all mankind, God of Ab¬
raham, Isaac and Jacob! I come before Thee
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
71
broken down in spirit and body, full of contri¬
tion and humility, to pray for the restoration of
the health of (name the sick person). Have com¬
passion upon (him) (her) ; let no evil befall upon
me by the misfortune of this dearly beloved mem¬
ber of my family. Thou, O Lord, art mighty and
righteous in judgment, and who am I to advance
my cause before Thy Throne of Glory? But
Thou, O Lord, knowest the needs of even Thy
smallest creature and dost provide for it the means
of sustenance. In Thy hand are all living; Thine
are our souls; our lives; our fate on this earth,
and Thine is the right to judge us when our earthly
cares are no longer troubling our consciousness.
In Thy hand is the real cure of all sickness; Thou
art the only source of all help and succor. But
Thou didst ordain in Thy Torah, that when one
is sick medical aid must be given to relieve suffer¬
ing, to effect a cure and to restore health and vigor.
May the doctor, under whose care the sick now is,
be Thy true messenger of mercy to bring the
proper remedy to this member of my family. And,
O Lord, as Zedakah to the poor is ever considered
an offering pleasing to Thee, I vow myself to dis¬
tribute a minimum of one Shekel, or more, within
the means Thou didst provide for my needs, in
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
accordance with the precept Thou didst ordain
that every member in the house of Israel shall tax
himself with at least one Shekel annually for the
poor and needy. And, may I be deserving to re¬
ceive Thy blessings for a complete healing to this
member of my family, speedily, Amen.
PSALM FOR THE NEW MOON
1 .
Bless the Lord, O my soull
O Lord my God, Thou art very great;
Thou art clothed with glory and majesty.
Who coverest Thyself with light as with a gar¬
ment,
Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain;
Who layest the beams of Thine upper chambers in
the waters,
Who makest the clouds Thy chariot,
Who walkest upon the wings of the wind;
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
73
Who makest winds Thy messengers,
The falming fire Thy ministers.
Who didst establish the earth upon its founda¬
tions,
That is should not be moved for ever and ever;
That didst cover it with the deep as with a vesture;
The waters stood above the mountains.
At Thy rebuke they fled,
At the voice of Thy thunder they hasted away—
The mountains rose, the valleys sank down—
Unto the place which Thou hadst founded for
them;
Thou didst set a bound which they should not pass
over,
That they might not return to cover the earth.
Who sendest forth springs into the valleys;
They run between the mountains
They give drink to every beast of the field,
The wild asses quench their thirst.
Beside them dwell the fowl of the heaven,
From among the branches they sing.
Who waterest the mountains from Thine upper
chambers;
The earth is full of the fruit of Thy works.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Who causest the grass to spring up for the cattle,
And herb for the service of man;
To bring forth bread out of the earth,
And wine that maketh glad the heart of man,
Making the face brighter than oil,
And bread that stayeth man’s heart.
The trees of the Lord have their fill,
The cedars of Lebanon, which He hath planted;
Wherein the birds make their nests;
As for the stork, the fir-trees are her house.
The high mountains are for the wild goats;
The rocks are a refuge for the conics.
Who appointedst the moon for the seasons;
The sun knoweth his going down.
Thou makest darkness, and it is night,
Wherein all the beasts of the forests do creep forth.
The young lions roar after their prey,
And seek their food from God.
The sun riseth, they slink away,
And couch in their dens.
Man goeth forth unto his work
And to his labors until the evening.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
75
How manifold are Thy works, O Lord!
In wisdom hast Thou made them all;
The earth is full of Thy creatures.
Yonder sea, great and wide,
Therein are creeping things innumerable,
Leaving creatures, both small and great.
There go the ships;
There is leviathan, whom Thou hast formed to
sport therein.
All of them wait for Thee,
That Thou mayest give them their food in due
season.
Thou givest it unto them, they gather it;
Thou openest Thy hand, they are satisfied with
good.
Thou hidest Thy face, they vanish;
Thou withdrawest their breath, they perish,
And return to their dust.
Thou sendest forth Thy spirit, they are created;
And Thou renewest the face of the earth.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;
Let the Lord rejoice in His Works!
Who looketh on the earth, and it trembeleth,
He toucheth the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise unto my God while I have any
being.
Let my musing be sweet unto Him;
As for me, I will rejoice in the Lord.
Let sin cease out of the earth,
And the wicked will be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Hallelujah.
2. The months, in the Hebrew method of re¬
ckoning time, are lunar; but the years are solar.
The solar year is longer than the lunar year by 10
days, 21 and 240/1080 hours. When about thirty
days accumulate, a month, Adar second, is added,
in order to equalize the lunar with the solar year.
It is written in the Holy Torah: “This month
(Nisan) shall be unto you the chief of months; the
first shall it be unto you of the months of the year.”
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
77
And, it is, moreover, written in the Holy Torah:
“Observe the month of Abib” (Spring—Nisan).
Thus, because the year is solar, the only month pos¬
sible to add is, Adar— so as to be certain that the
month of Nisan—Abib—is during the spring
season, and so that Passover (Pesah) will always
be in the month of Abib—Nisan. Otherwise,
Passover, which is ordained to be observed in Ni¬
san, will sometimes be observed in spring-time,
and sometimes, if no proper equalization between
the lunar month and the solar year will take place,
in winter-time. Moses transmitted the system of
accurate intercalation to his successors, and not a
single error, even in one particle of a second, can
be traced, since the Exodus, in the Hebrew method
of calculating time. The equalization between
the lunar and the solar years comes about once
in nineteen years, by adding seven months—Adar
—during that cycle. In twenty-eight solar years,
there takes place an equalization of the hours and
the days of the week of seven days, which is iden¬
tical with the system of reckoning of days and
hours by all nations. During thirteen lunar cycles,
or once in 247 years, there takes place an equaliza¬
tion of the number of weeks. It was for this rea¬
son that the New Moon, which is the foundation
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
of accurate reckoning of time, is a semi-festival in
Israel. It is the usage throughout Israel to bless
the New Moon on the Sabbath morning preceding
it, and to deliver this special prayer:
3. May it be Thy will, O Lord our God and
God of our fathers, to renew unto us this coming
month for good and for blessing. O grant us long
life, a life of peace, of good, of blessing, of sus¬
tenance, of bodily vigor; a life marked by the fear
of Him who is in heaven and the dread of sin; a
life free from shame and disgrace; a life of pros¬
perity and honor; a life in which the love of the
Torah and fear for Him who is in heaven shall be
ours; a life in which our heart’s wishes shall be
granted to overflow with good, Amen. Selah.
4. He who wrought miracles for our fathers,
and redeemed them from servitude to liberty, may
He speedily redeem us, and gather our dispersed
brethren from the four corners of the earth, and
constitute all Israel in one fellowship, and let us
say, Amen.
5. The coming New Moon will be (name the
month and day, or days, upon which it will fall),
May its coming be to us and to all Israel for good.
6. May the Holy One, blessed be He! renew
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
79
the month unto us and unto all His people, the
house of Israel, for a life and peace (Amen), for
gladness and joy (Amen), for salvation and com¬
fort and let us say, Amen.
PSALM FOR ROSH HA-SHANAH
1 .
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom
shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom
shall I be afraid?
When evil-doers came upon me to eat up my flesh,
Even my adversaries and my foes, they stumbled
and fell.
Though a host should encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war should rise up against me,
Even then will I be confident.
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One thing have I asked of the Lord; that will I
seek after;
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the
days of my life,
To behold the graciousness of the
Lord, and to visit early in His temple.
For He concealeth me in His pavilion in the day
of evil;
He hideth me in the covert of His tent;
He lifted me up upon a rock.
And now shall my head be lifted up above mine
enemies round about me,
And I will offer in His tabernacle sacrifices with-
trumpet-sound;
I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
Hear, O Lord, when I call with my voice,
And be gracious unto me, and answer me.
In Thy behalf my heart hath said:
‘Seek ye My face*;
Thy face, O Lord, will I seek.
Hide not Thy face from me;
Put not Thy servant away in anger;
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
81
Thou hast been my help;
Cast me not off, neither forsake me,
0 God of my salvation.
For though my father and my mother have for¬
saken me,
The Lord will take me up.
Teach me Thy way, O Lord;
And lead me in an even path,
Because of them that lie in wait for me.
Deliver me not over unto the will of mine adver¬
saries;
For false witnesses are risen up against me, and
such as breathe out violence.
If I had not believed to look upon the goodness of
the Lord
In the land of the living!—
Wait for the Lord;
Be strong and let thy heart take courage;
Yea, wait for the Lord.
2. On the first day of Tishri Rosh ha-Sha-
nah, the Calendar (lunar), Sabbatical, Jubilee
and Agricultural year is ushered in. Tishri is the
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
seventh month of the Regal and Festival year,
which falls of the first day of Nisan. Thus the
Holy Torah says: “In the seventh month (Tish-
ri), on the first day of the month (Rosh ha-Sha-
nah) shall ye have a Sabbath, a memorial of blow¬
ing of trumpets, an holy convocation.”
3. There are four catagories of prayers on
Rosh ha-Shanah, Maarib (evening prayer) ; Sha-
harit (morning prayer) ; Musaph (Additional
prayer) and Minhah (afternoon prayer). The
Musaph prayer embraces (a) the Sovereignty of
God; (b) Retrospection; (c) Meaning of the
Trumpet (Shophar).
4. (a) The universal reign of God; the
triumph of the spiritual over the material; the
universal recognition of God, as a basis for good
conduct, which leads to the good in life.
5. (b) The historic sacrifices the people of
Israel made; its aim to end suffering for the es¬
tablishment of God’s reign among mankind.
6. (c) Liberty, its spiritual, rather than its
physical, meaning, which is proclaimed to the
world by the blast of the Shophar.
7. These three distinct categories of prayer
embrace ten passages each from the Bible; three
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
83
from the Torah; three from the Psalms, and three
from the Prophets. The last prayer, before the
third benediction is pronounced, is an additional
passage from the Torah.
PSALM FOR THE DAY OF ATONEMENT
(Yom Kippur)
For the Leader. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
Lord, Thou hast been favorable unto Thy land,
Thou hast turned the captivity of Jacob.
Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of Thy people,
Thou hast pardoned all their sin. Selah.
Thou hast withdrawn all Thy wrath;
Thou hast turned from the fierceness of Thine
anger.
Restore us, O God, our salvation,
And cause Thine indignation toward us to cease.
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Wilt Thou be angry with us for ever?
Wilt Thou draw out Thine anger to all genera¬
tions?
Wilt Thou not quicken us again,
That Thy people may rejoice in Thee?
Show us Thy mercy, O Lord,
And grant us Thy salvation.
I will hear what God the Lord will speak;
For he will speak peace unto His people, and unto
His saints;
But let them not turn back to folly.
Surely His salvation is nigh them that fear Him;
That glory may dwell in our land.
Mercy and truth are met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
Truth springeth out of the earth;
And righteousness hath looked down from heaven.
Yea, the Lord will give that which is good;
And our land shall yield her produce.
Righteousness shall go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps sway.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
85
Yom Kip pur
1. Our Torah says: “It (Yom ha-Kippurim)
shall be unto you a Sabbath of rest... And this
shall be a statute for ever unto you, that on the
seventh month (Tishri), on the tenth day of the
month, ye shall afflict your souls. For whatever
soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same
day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
Ye shall do no work in that same day.
2. There is a moral death and a physical
death. The wicked are morally dead while they
are still moving about in a pool of their own wick¬
edness on earth. The righteous and sainty, who
long since have yielded their earthly activities, are
still alive to posterity. Life is purposeless to those
who do not find aught but physical pleasure on
this earth. They tire of it; it becomes a burden;
they sicken of it; and they long for death as an
end of all—not as a goal at the end of a day’s
work well done.
3. Yom Kippur to Israel is a fountain of new
life, a mile-post on a journey with a definite des¬
tination as its goal; it ends a chapter in every one’s
book of life, and brings a hope that the next chap-
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
ter will be a chronicle of better, happier, matter.
Yom Kippur is a day set aside to recast our lives,
re-model our conduct, re-shape our career, re¬
form our habits—a day of repentance for all that
is past, and of determination for all that is to come.
4. We can not accomplish this, unless we
shed, as much as is possible for mortals, our being
of clay, and permit our being of spirit to assert
itself; unless we subdue our passions completely,
and learn ourselves to be governed by our better
inclinations, by the cravings which come from our
soul. Therefore, eating, drinking, work, physical
pleasure of any kind, is forbidden. The minute
the physical within us becomes master, our soul
is but of secondary consideration. Prayers, near¬
ness to God, meditation, reflection, retrospection,
introspection, and thinking will call forth our spi¬
ritual being, and—that is the real purpose of Yom
Kippur.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
87
PSALM OF THE SUKKOT FESTIVAL
1 .
‘O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good,
For His mercy endureth for ever!’
So let the redeemed of the Lord say,
Whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the
adversary;
And gathered them out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the sea.
And He saved them out of their distresses;
He sent Plis word, and healed them,
And delivered them from their graves.
Let them give thanks unto the Lord for His mercy,
And for His wonderful work to the children of
men!
And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And declare His works with singing.
Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the
people,
And praise Him in the seat of the elders.
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He turneth wilderness into a pool of water,
And a dry land into watersprings.
And there He maketh the hungry to dwell,
And they establish a city of habitation;
And sow fields, and plant vineyards,
Which yield fruit of increase.
He blesseth them also, so that they are multiplied
greatly,
And suffereth not their cattle to decrease.
Whoso is wise, let him observe these things,
And let them consider the mercies of the Lord.
2. The Feast of Sukkot (Booths) falls on the
fifteenth day of Tishri. Sukkot is also called Hag
ha-Asiph (Feast of Ingathering), because it is en¬
tirely an agricultural holiday. Harvest time, dur¬
ing the Palestinian era, was, indeed, an occasion
for joy and festivity. It is written in the Torah:
“Ye shall dwell in booths seven days. On the first
day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no
servile work therein. On the eighth day (She’mini
Azeret) shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do
no servile work therein.” Concerning the Sukkot
festival it also is written in the Torah: And ye
shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly
trees (Etrog), branches of palm-trees (Lulab),
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
89
and boughs of thick trees (Hadassim), and wil¬
lows of the brook (Arabot), and ye shall rejoice
before the Lord your God seven days.
3. On the first day of Sukkot, if it falls on a
week day, the following prayer is delivered before
pronouncing the benediction over the “Four
Kind”—Etrog, Lulab Hadassim, and Arabot:
4. May it be Thy will, O Lord, my God, and
the God of my fathers, that for the sake of the fruit
of the goodly trees (Etrog), and the branches of
the palm-trees (Lulab), and the boughs of the
thick tree (Hadassim), and the willows of the
brook (Arabot), which are Four Kind, may the
Tetragrammaton of Thy Unified Name be brought
near unto one another; and may they be unified
in my hand, that I may know how Thy Name is
proclaimed through me, so that evil be in fear to
approach me. I pray Thee, while I wave the
four kind, may the stream of blessing flow upon
me with eternal wisdom that I may discover the
Abode and House of our God. And may this, my
observing of Thy precepts concerning the four
kind, be considered as if I fulfilled it in all its
details and offshoots, and all of the six hundred
and thirteen commandments contingent upon it.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
My intention is to Unify the Name of the Holy
One, blessed be He, and His Shekinahi More¬
over, to unify the Name of the Lord, my God,
with perfect Unity, in the name of all Israel.
Blessed be the Lord for ever, Amen, Amen.
5. Take the Etrog in the left hand, and the
Lulab in the right; bring your hands and the
Etrog and Lulab together, and pronounce this
Benediction:
6. Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King
of the universe, who hath sanctified us by His
commandments, and commanded us concerning
the taking of the Lulab.
On the first day, add this Benediction :
7. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God, King
of the universe, who hath kept us in life, and hath
preserved us, and enabled us to overtake this
season.
8. On Hoshana Rabba, the seventh day of
Sukkot, the willows of the brook (Arabot) are
smitten thrice on the floor, so that some leaves fall
off, at the conclusion of the Hoshanot prayers.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
91
PSALM FOR HANUKAH
1 .
I will extol Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast raised
me up,
And hast not suffered mine enemies to rejoice
over me.
Sing praise unto the Lord, O ye His godly ones,
And give thanks to His holy name.
Thou didst turn for me my mourning into dancing;
Thou didst loose my sackcloth, and gird me with
gladness;
So that my glory may sing praise to Thee, and not
be silent;
O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto Thee
for ever.
2. Hanukah is one of the festivals instituted
by the Rabbis during the Hashmonean era, in com¬
memoration of both, the miracle of the ointment
of the Temple, and the victory of the Maccabees
over the Greeks. It is therefore called Hag ha-
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Narot (festival of lights) and Hag ha-Makbim
(festival of the Maccabees).
3. After the great victory, the Temple was
purified, but no pure ointment was found, save a
small cruse, hidden beneath the floor, with the seal
of the High-Priest thereon. Ordinarily such
quantity of ointment could have supplied the Me-
norah but for one day, or less; but miraculously it
continued to burn for eight consecutive days. In
commemoration of this miracle the Rabbis or¬
dained the lighting of candles eight consecutive
days, beginning on the night preceding the twenty-
fifth day of the Hebrew calendar month Kislev.
4. A candle is added each night, commencing
with one the first night and ending with eight the
last night. The festival is eight days in accord¬
ance with the rite of dedication of the Tabernacle,
which lasted eight days. And, as the Temple was
then purified and re-dedicated the festival is best
known under the name of Hanukah-dedication.
5. The mothers of Israel have made Hanu-
kah a real season of joy, particularly for the young
ones. Open house is kept for them and their
friends; special delicacies are prepared for the
delight of both, young and old, and the Hanukah
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
93
season became a mile-post in the history of every
Jewish institution, which, during this week re¬
ceives contributions more than in any other season
during the year. It is now, however, more than
ever before in Jewish history a national holiday.
PSALM FOR PURIM
1 .
O Thou that art enthroned upon the praises of
Israel,
In Thee did our fathers trust;
They trusted, and Thou didst deliver them.
For Thou art He that took me out of the womb;
Thou madest me trust when I was upon my
mother’s breasts.
Upon Thee I have been cast from my birth;
Thou art my God from my mother’s womb.
I will declare Thy name unto my brethern;
In the midst of the congregation will I praise
Thee;
Ye that fear the Lord, praise Him;
All ye the seed of Jacob, glorify Him;
And stand in awe of Him, all ye the seed of Israel.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn
unto the Lord;
And all the kingdoms of the nations shall worship
before Thee.
For the kingdom is the Lord’s;
And He is the ruler over the nations.
It shall be told of the Lord unto the next genera¬
tion.
They shall come and shall declare His righteous¬
ness
Unto a people that shall be born, that He hath
done it.
2. The festival of Purim is founded upon the
story related in the book of Esther, which, like
the Torah itself, will ever be read with reverence
and in sacredness. The book of Esther is called—
Megillah. Its reading is obligatory, being one of
the seven precepts instituted by the ancient Rabbis.
It is entirely a festival of joy, alms-giving, and
merry-making.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
95
PSALM FOR PASSOVER
1 .
When Israel came forth out of Egypt,
The house of Jacob from a people of strange lan¬
guage;
Judah became His sanctuary,
Israel His dominion.
The sea saw it, and fled;
The Jordan turned backward.
The mountains skipped like rams,
The hills like young sheep.
What aileth thee, O thou sea, that thou fleest?
Thou Jordan, that thou turnest backward?
Ye mountains, that ye skip like rams;
Ye hills, like young sheep?
Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the God of Jacob;
Who turned the rock into a pool of water,
The flint into a fountain of waters.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Passover
2. Concerning the Passover (Pesah) Festival
the holy Torah commands: “Even the first day ye
shall put away leaven out of your houses. Ye shall
eat nothing leavened. There shall no leavened
bread be eaten. Seven days there shall no leaven
be found in your houses. And there shall no
leavened bread be seen with thee. Thou shalt not
eat leavened bread with it (Paschal lamb). In the
first month (Nisan), on the fourteenth day of the
month, at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread. In
the first day is an holy convocation; ye shall do no
servile work therein; in the seventh day is an holy
convocation; ye shall do no servile work therein.
And thou shalt shew thy son in that day (Seder
night) saying: This is done because of that which
the Lord did unto me when I came out of Egypt.”
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
97
Psalm For Slie’baot ( Pentecost)
For the Leader. A Psalm of David, a Song.
Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered;
And let them that hate Him flee before Him.
But let the righteous be glad, let them exult before
God;
Yea, let them rejoice with gladness.
Sing unto God, sing praises unto His name;
Extol Him that rideth upon the skies, whose name
is the Lord;
And exult ye before Him.
A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the
widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
O God, when Thou wentest forth before Thy
people,
When Thou didst march through the wilderness;
The earth trembled, the heaven also dropped at the
presence of God;
Even yon Sinai trembled at the presence of God,,
the God of Israel.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
Why look ye askance, ye mountains of peaks,
At the mountain which God hath desired for His
abode?
Ye the Lord will dwell therein for ever.
The chariots of God are myriads, even thousands
upon thousands;
The Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in holiness.
Blessed be the Lord, day by day He beareth our
burden,
Even the God who is our salvation. Selah.
TABLE FOR THE ARRANGEMENT OF
THE MONTHS, FESTIVALS, FAST
AND FEAST DAYS.
1. NISAN. Passover (Pesah) begins on the
eve of the fourteenth day of the month, and con¬
tinues eight days in Diaspora, and seven days in
Palestine. On the second day of Passover, which
is the sixteenth day of the month, the counting of
the Omer (Sheaf Measure) begins. The 17th,
18th, 19th and 20th days of the month are inter¬
mediary days (Hoi ha-Moed). The* 21st and
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
99
22nd days of the month are the two last feast days
of Passover (Pesah) in Diaspora; and the 21st day
is the last feast day of Passover (Pesah) in Pa¬
lestine. On the last day of the festival, memorial
services is conducted in every synagogue.
2. IYAR: The 18th day of the month is al¬
ways the thirty-third day of the Omer (Sheaf)
Measure)—Lag ba-Omer.
3. SIVAN: On the sixth and on the seventh
days of the month the Feast of Weeks—Shebuot—
(Pentecost) is celebrated in Diaspora; and the
sixth day only in Palestine. Memorial services are
conducted on the second day of the festival.
4. TAMUZ: On the 17th day of the month
the Fast of Tamuz is observed (Shib’ah Asar be’-
Tamuz). This day is a fateful day in the history
of Israel. On this day Moses broke the First Two
Tablets, after the people of Israel worshipped the
“golden calf”; the daily offering, Karban Tamid,
ceased during the first Temple; Jerusalem was
broken open before the destruction of the Second
Temple, the Torah was burned, and an idol set
up in the Sanctuary.
5. AB : The Fast of the Ninth of Ab (Tish’a
be-Ab) ; anniversary of the destruction of both,
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the First and the Second Temple. On the 15th of
Ab (Hamisha Asar be-Ab) the Palestinian Jews,
in the ancient times, celebrated a “get-together”
festival. The young folks went out to meet in the
parks and places of amusements. All had borrowed
clothes for the occasion, so as not to put to shame
the poor girl; all danced, and, in selecting danc¬
ing-partners, a number of matches were arranged
there and then. In Diaspora it is called—“Little
Festival.” No mourning, no memorial service, and
no extreme supplications are delivered in the syna¬
gogues.
6. ELLUL: From the first day of the month,
after the morning service, the Shophar is sounded.
The last week in Ellul is called—“Week of Se’-
lihot.” During that week, commencing on the
preceding Sunday, or late Saturday night, and
every morning thereafter till Rosh-ha-Shanah,
prayers for forgiveness (Se’lihot) are delivered.
7. TISHRI: On the first and Second days of
the month falls Rosh ha-Shanah, and is observed
two days also in Palestine. On the third day of
the month the Fast of Gedaliah is observed. Before
the destruction of the First Temple, on the mor¬
row after Rosh-ha-Shanah, Ishmael ben Nethania
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
101
killed the prophet and priest, Gedaliah ben Ahi-
kom, within the walls of the Temple. That tra¬
gedy hastened the destruction of the remnant and
scattered forces of the fighting Israelites. To atone
this crime, a fast day was ordered. On the tenth
day of the month is Yom ha-Kippurim. Memor¬
ial services are conducted before the Musaph pray¬
er. The Feast of Booths—Sukkot—(Tabernacles)
begins on the eve of the fourteenth day of the
month, and continues nine days in Diaspora, and
eight days in Palestine. The 17th, 18th, 19th and
20th days are the intermediary period (Hoi ha-
Moed) ; the 21st day is observed as the Day of
Great Salvation (Hoshanah Rabba). The 22nd
and 23rd days are observed as The Eighth Day of
Solemn Assembly and Rejoicing of the Law (She 7 -
mini Azeret; Simhat Torah) respectively. In
Palestine both these festivals are combined in one
day.
8. MARHESHVAN: This is the only month
in the Jewish calendar year which has neither feast
nor fast days.
9. KISLEV: On the eve of the 24th, which is
the night preceding the 25th day of the month
Hanukah is ushered in. Six days of the festival
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
are celebrated during the month of Kislev; the
other two days in the succeeding month.
10. TEBETH : The last two days of Hanukah
are observed on the first and on the second days
of the month. The fast of the the Tenth of Te-
beth (Asarah be-Tebet) is observed as the fateful
anniversary, when Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jeru¬
salem, which was poorly garrisoned with hardly
any provisions to withstand the siege.
11. SHEBAT: The fifteenth day of Shebat
(Hamisha Asar be-Shebat) is the Palestinian New
Year for trees—Jewish national arbor day. In
the ancient times, Jewish mothers, if they were
delivered of a child during the year planted a tree
of Hamisha Asar be-Shebat; when the child grew
up, and the day of his or her marriage approached,
both mothers of the bride and groom went to
orchard, or forest, or park, located the trees they
planted before their children were one year old,
and cut down four branches, which served as poles
for the canopy, under which their children were
united in marriage.
12. ADAR: On the thirteenth day of the
month, the Fast of Esther is observed; on that
night the Megillah is read, and the fourteenth
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
103
day constitute the Purim festival. The 15th day
is Shushan Purim. When a second Adar is added,
both the fast day and the festival take place on the
thirteenth and fourteenth of the Second Adar. On
the first Adar, the fourteenth and fifteenth of the
month are called—Little Purim and Little Shu¬
shan Purim respectively.
Months of 30 Days
1. Nisan, Sivan, Ab, Tishri, Shebat, First
Adar in a leap year.
Months of 29 Days .
2. Iyar, Tamuz, Ellul, Tebet, and Adar, in an
ordinary year. The months of Marheshvan and
Kislev vary, sometimes they are of 29 and some¬
times of 30 days.
3. The days on which the first day of Rosh ha-
Shanah may fall are: Monday, Tuesday, Thurs¬
day or Saturday.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
4. Yom Kippur may fall: on Monday, Wed¬
nesday, Thursday, or Saturday.
5. The first day of Sukkot may fall: on Mon¬
day, Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday
6. The first day of Hanukah may fall: on
Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and on
Friday.
7. The Fast of the Tenth of Tebet may fall:
on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or
Friday.
8. Purim may fall: on Sunday, Tuesday,
Thursday or Friday.
9. The first day of Passover may fall: on Sun¬
day, Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday.
10. The first day of She’buot may fall: on
Sunday, Monday, Wednesday or Friday.
11. The fast of the 17th of Tamuz and the 9th
day of Ab may fall: On Sunday, Tuesday, Thurs¬
day, or Saturday. When these fast days fall on a
Saturday the fast is postponed till Sunday.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
105
Days of Fasts and Festivals Set by the Passover .
12. The fast of Ab always falls on the same
day as the first day of Passover. The first day of
Pentecost always falls on the same day as the
second day of Passover. The first day of Rosh
ha-Shanah is always on the same day as the third
day of Passover. The festival of Rejoicing of the
Law always falls on the same day as the fourth day
of Passover. The Day of Atonement always falls
on the same day as the fifth day of Passover. The
feast of Purim always falls on the same day as
the sixth day of the Passover succeeding it. On the
day that Purim falls, will also be Lag-ba-Omer.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
PRAYER FOR SUSTENANCE
(Parnasah ).
Lord of the universe! Thou in Thy infinite
wisdom didst make provision for every living
creature, both small and big, and Thou causest
Thy blessing to fall upon the earth in rain and in
dew to sate the hungry, and to give them the
comfort which they ever stand in need. Without
Thy help nothing could live, and no one could
have life’s needs provided for. Thou didst say:
“Then I will command My blessing upon you in
the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce
for the three years,” that is for the sixth, for the
seventh and for the eight years during the Sabba¬
tical season.
Grant, I pray Thee, that there be none in this
world for whose sins Thou causest the heavens to
restrain the rain and bringest famine. Implant
in the hearts of mankind that willingness to be of
help to one another for whose sake Thou givest
both heaven and earth as an inheritance to the
righteous, even as Thou didst give it to Abraham
our father.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
107
O Lord! The time of adversity humbles the
soul of man, but how long, O God of Israel, wilst
Thou hold out the rod of punishment toward those
who are but dust and clay, who are helpless with¬
out Thy aid even as is the newly-born babe with¬
out its mother.
Cause Thy blessed Shekinah to cast its rays of
light upon me and mine so that we all be able to
see the path most favored by Thee for us to fol¬
low. Thou art the only One to give strength to
the weak and bread to the poor. From Thy hand,
O Lord, provide the daily needs of my family.
Bless the work of my husband and the work of
all those with whom he is associated! Let not ad¬
versity invade my home, and let not my children
taste the bitterness of hunger, thirst, cold, disease
and pestilence.
Answer my prayer, and grant me of Thy bless¬
ings, even as Thou didst answer Ruth, who found
her kinsman’s field, and became the mother of Thy
anointed King David. I beseech Thee not to
consider Thy servant begging for riches for its
own sake; my contrite heart is poured out to Thee
for the sake of Parnasah , which is the daily bread
and home of my family. My husband doth not look
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
forward to gain the wealth which in reality brings
on poverty to the soul; he merely engages him¬
self in a calling to be Thy messenger to provide for
the needs of my home and family. Bless his en¬
deavors, and mayest Thou bring a Redeemer to
Zion, Amen.
SELECTED SCRIPTURAL READING
FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS.
I.
After Child-Birth
And Hannah prayed and said:
My heart exulteth in the Lord,
My horn is exalted in the Lord;
My mouth is enlarged over my enemies;
Because I rejoice in Thy salvation.
There is none holy as the Lord;
For there is none beside Thee;
Neither is there any rock like our God.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
109
Multiply not exceeding proud talk;
Let not arrogancy come out of your mouth;
For the Lord is a God of knowledge,
And by Him actions are weighed.
The bows of the mighty men are broken,
And they that stumbled are girded with strength.
They that were full have hired out themselves for
bread;
And they that were hungry have ceased;
While the barren hath born seven,
She that had many children hath languished.
The Lord killeth and maketh alive;
He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.
The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich;
He bringeth low, He also lifteth up.
He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,
He lifted up the needy from the dung-hill,
To make them seat with princes,
And inherit the throne of glory;
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s
And He hath set the world upon them.
110
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
He will keep the feet of His holy ones,
But the wicked shall be put to silence in darkness;
For not by strength shall man prevail.
They that strive with the Lord shall be broken
to pieces;
Against them will He thunder in heaven;
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth;
And He will give strength unto His king,
And exalt the horn of His anointed.
And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And
the child did minister unto the Lord before Eli
the priest.
II.
After Recovering From Sickness
In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death.
And Isaiah, the prophet, the son of Amoz came to
him, and said unto him: ‘Thus saith the Lord: Set
thy house in order; for thou shalt die, and not
live.’ Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall,
and prayed unto the Lord, and said: ‘Remember
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
11
now, O Lord, I beseech Thee, how I have walked
before Thee in truth and with a whole heart, and
have done that which is good in Thy sight’. And
Hezekiah wept sore.
Then came the word of the Lord to Isaiah,
saying: ‘Go, and say to Hezekiah: Thus saith the
Lord, the God of David thy father: I have heard
thy prayer, I have seen thy tears; behold I will
add unto thy days fifteen years. I will deliver
thee and this city out of the hand of the king of
Assyria; and I will defend this city. And this
shall be the sign unto thee from the Lord, that the
Lord will do this thing that He hath spoken: be¬
hold, I will cause the shadow of the dial, which
is gone down on the sun-dial of Ahaz, to return
backwards ten degrees.’ So the sun returned ten
degrees, by which degrees it was gone down.
The writing of Hezekiah, King of Judah,
when he had been sick, and was recovered of his
sickness.
I said: In the noontide of days I shall go,
Even to the gates of the netherworld;
I am deprived of the residue of my years.
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PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
I said: I will not see the Lord,
Even the Lord in the land of the living;
I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants
of the world.
My habitation is plucked up and carried away
from me
As a shepherd’s tent;
I have rolled up like a weaver my life;
He will cut me off from the thrum;
From the day even to night wilt Thou make an
end of me.
The more I make myself like unto a lion until
morning,
The more it breaketh all my bones;
From day even to night wilt Thou make an end
of me.
Like a swallow, or a crane, so do I chatter,
I do moan as a dove;
Mine eyes fail with looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed, be Thou my surety.
What shall I say? He hath both spoken unto me,
And Himself hath done it;
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
113
I shall go softly all my years for the bitterness of
my soul.
0 Lord, by these things man live,
And altogether therein is the life of my spirit;
Wherefore recover Thou me, and make me to live.
Behold, for my peace I had great bitterness;
But Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it
From the pit of corruption;
For Thou hast cast all my sins behind Thy back.
For the nether-world can not praise Thee,
Death can not celebrate Thee;
They that go down into the pit cannot hope for
Thy truth.
The living, the living, he shall praise Thee,
As I do this day;
The Lord is ready to save me;
Therefore we will sing songs to the stringed in¬
struments
All the days of our life in the house of the Lord.
14
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
III.
After Returning From a Recreational Trip
A Psalm of David.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul;
He guideth me in straight paths for His name’s
sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
For Thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence
of mine enemies;
Thou hast anointed my head with oil; my cup
runneth over.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
5
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the
days of my life;
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for
ever.
IV.
At the Departure on a Journey of a Near and
Dear One
A song of ascents.
I will lift up mine eyes unto the mountains:
From whence shall my help come?
My help cometh from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved;
He that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Behold, He that keepeth Israel
Doth neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is thy keeper;
The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day,
Nor the moon by night.
16
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
The Lord shall keep thee from all evil;
He shall keep thy soul.
The Lord shall guard thy going out and thy com¬
ing in,
From this time forth and forever.
V.
On the Homecoming of a Near and Dear One
A Psalm of thanksgiving.
Shout unto the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Know ye that the Lord He is God;
It is He that hath made us, and we are His.
His people, and the flock of His pasture.
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into his courts with praise;
Give thanks unto Him, and bless His name.
For the Lord is good; His mercy endureth for¬
ever ;
And His faithfulness unto all generations.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
11 7
VI.
After a Restless Night of Evil Dreams
And again I lifted up mine eyes, and saw,
and, behold, there came four chariots out from
between the two mountains; and the mountains
were mountains of brass. In the first chariot were
red horses; and in the second chariot black horses;
and in the third chariot white horses; and in the
fourth chariot grizzled bay horses. Then I an¬
swered and said unto the angel that spoke with
me: ‘What are these my lord?’ And the angel an¬
swered and said unto me: ‘These chariots go forth
to the four winds of heaven, after presenting them¬
selves before the Lord of all the earth. That
wherein are the black horses goeth forth toward
the north country; and the white went forth after
them; and the grizzled went forth toward the south
country; and the bay went forth.’ And they sought
to go that they might walk to and fro through the
earth; and he said: ‘Get you hence, walk to and
fro through the earth.’ Then cried he upon me,
saying: ‘Behold, they that go toward the north
country have eased my spirit in the north country.’
18
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
And the word of the Lord came unto me, say¬
ing: ‘Take of them of the captivity, even of Hel-
dai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah, that are come
from Babylon; and come thou the same day, and
go into the house of Judah, the son of Zephaniah;
yea, take silver and gold, and make crowns, and
set the one upon the head of Joshua son of Jeho-
zadak, the high priest; and speak unto him, say¬
ing: Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying: Be¬
hold a man whose name is the Shoot, and who
shall shoot up out of his place, and build the
temple of the Lord; even he shall build the temple
of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall
sit and rule upon his throne; and there shall be a
priest before his throne; and the counsel of peace
shall be between them both. And the crowns shall
be to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and
to Hen the son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the
temple of the Lord. And they that are far off
shall come and build in the temple of the Lord,
and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent
me unto you. And it shall come to pass, if you
will diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord
your God.’
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
119
VII.
On Hearing of Good Tidings of One f s Near and
Dear Ones
How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of the messenger of good tidings,
That announceth peace, the harbinger of good
tidings,
That announceth salvation;
That saith unto Zion:
Thy God reigneth!
Hark, thy watchman! they lift up the voice,
Together do they sing;
For they shall see, eye to eye,
The Lord returning to Zion.
Break forth into joy, sing together,
Ye waste places of Jerusalem;
For the Lord hath comforted His people,
He hath redeemed Jerusalem.
The Lord hath made bare His holy arm
In the eyes of all the nations;
120
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
And all the ends of the earth shall see
The salvation of our God.
Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence,
Touch no unclean thing;
Go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean,
Ye that bear the vessels of the Lord.
For ye shall not go out in haste,
Neither shall ye go by flight;
For the Lord will go before you,
And the God of Israel will be your rear-ward.
Behold, my servant shall prosper,
He shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be
very high.
According as many appalled at thee—
So marred was his visage unlike that of man,
And his form unlike that of the sons of men—
So shall he startle many nations,
Kings shall shut their mouths because of him;
For that which had not been told them shall they
see
And that which they had not heard shall they per¬
ceive.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
121
Who would have believed our report?
And to whom hath the arm of the Lord been re¬
vealed?
For he shot up right forth as a sapling,
And as a root of a dry ground;
He had no form nor comeliness, that we should
look upon him,
Nor beauty that we should delight in him.
Thy people shall also be all righteous,
They shall inherit the land for ever;
The branch of My planting, the work of My
hands,
Wherein I glory.
The smallest shall become a thousand,
And the least a mighty nation;
I the Lord will hasten it in its time.
122
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
MEMORIAL SERVICE
O Lord, of what account is man that Thou
regardest him, or the son of man that Thou con-
siderest him? Man is likened to vanity; his days
to a shadow that passeth away. In the morning he
is like grass, which groweth up; in the evening
it is cut down, and withereth. Thou turnest man
to contrition; and sayest: “Return, ye children
of men. If they were wise they would understand
this, they would discern their latter end. For when
he dieth, he shall carry nothing away; his wealth
shall not descend after him. Mark the innocent
man, and behold the upright; for the latter end
of such man is peace. The Lord redeemeth the
soul of his servants: and none of them that take
refuge in Him shall be condemned.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
123
For the Soul of a Father
May God remember the soul of my revered
father ( name him and his father) who departed
for his World. For his sake I vow to distribute
charity, now that his soul is remembered. As a re¬
ward of this my vow, may his soul be bound in the
Bundle of Life, together with the souls of Abra¬
ham, Isaac and Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel
and Leah and together with the rest of the right¬
eous men and women who are in the Garden of
Eden, and, let us say: Amen.
For the Soul of a Mother
May God remember the soul of my revered
mother ( name her and her father) who departed
for her World. For her sake I vow to distribute
charity, now that her soul is remembered. As a
reward of this my vow, may her soul be bound in
the Bundle of Life, together with the souls of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah, Ra-
124
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
chel and Leah, and together with the rest of the
righteous men and women who are in the Garden
of Eden, and, let us say: Amen.
For the Souls of Grandparents and Other Near
Relatives
May God remember the souls of my grand¬
father and my grandmother, my uncles and my
aunts, my brothers and my sisters, whether from
my paternal or from my maternal side, who de¬
parted for their World. For their sake I vow to
distribute charity, now that their souls are re¬
membered. As a reward of this my vow, may their
souls be bound in the Bundle of Life together
with the souls of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel and Leah, and together
with the rest of the righteous men and women
who are in the Garden of Eden, and, let us say:
Amen.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
125
For the Souls of Those Who Sacrificed Their
Lives to Sanctify the Name of God
May God remember the soul of ( name him or
her, and his or her father, if a particular soul is
to be remembered) and the souls of all my rela¬
tives, men and women, whether from my paternal
or from my maternal side who departed for their
World; whether they were killed outright or met
death by violence, whether they were slaughtered
or burned, whether they were drowned or stran¬
gled for the sake of sanctifying the Name of God.
For their sake I vow to distribute charity, now
that their souls are remembered. As a reward of
this my vow, may their souls be bound in the
Bundle of Life, together with the souls of Ab¬
raham, Isaac and Jacob, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel
and Leah, and together with the rest of the right¬
eous men and women who are in the Garden of
Eden, and, let us say: Amen.
126
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
PRAYER FOR A DEPARTED MAN
Merciful God! Thou dwellest in high heavens!
find a permanent repose, beneath the wings of the
Shekinah, in the degrees of the holy and pure who
shine with the lustre of heaven, for the soul (name
him and his father) who went forth to his World.
For his sake, now when his soul is remembered,
a vow was made to distribute alms. May his re¬
pose be in the Garden of Eden! May the Owner
of mercy, therefore, treasure him in the secret
places of His wings forever, and bind his soul in
the Bundle of Life. May God be his inheritance.
And may he repose upon his resting-place in
peace; and, let us say: Amen.
PRAYER FOR A DEPARTED WOMAN
Merciful God!Thou dwellest in high heavens!
find a permanent repose, beneath the wings of the
Shekinah, in the degrees of the holy and pure who
shine with the lustre of heaven, for the soul (name
her and her father) who went forth to her World.
PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
127
For her sake, now when her soul is remembered, a
vow was made to distribute alms. May her repose
be in the Garden of Eden! May the Owner of
mercy, therefore, treasure her in the secret places
of His wings forever, and bind her soul in the
Bundle of Life. May God be her inheritance!
And may she repose upon her resting place in
peace; and, let us say: Amen.
Perfect rest beneath the wings of the Shekhi-
nah, in the degrees of the holy and the pure who
light and shine as the lustre of the heaven, for¬
giveness of trespasses, and removal of iniquity, and
bringing near of Salvation, and compassion and
grace from before Him who dwelleth on High,
and a good share in the world to come. There shall
be the portion of (here name the departed) who
were gathered unto their people. May the Spirit
of God make them rest in the Garden of Eden.
May the Supreme King of Kings in his mercies
have pity and compassion over them, and may he
hide them beneath the shadow of his wings and
in the secret places of his tabernacle to behold the
graciousness of the Lord and to visit early in His
128 \_ PRAYERS FOR THE DAUGHTERS OF ISRAEL
temple. May peace be joined unto them and may
peace reign upon their couches. As it is said: “He
entereth in peace, they rest in their beds, each one
that walketh in his uprightness. May He bound in
the Bundle of Life their souls, and may He place
glory as their resting-place together with all those
who dwell in the dust, the upright and perfect
ones. And let us say Amen.
A song of ascents: Out of the depths have I
called Thee, O Lord. Lord hearken unto my
voice; let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of
my supplications. If Thou, O Lord, shouldest
mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? For
with Thee there is foregiveness, that Thou mayest
be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait,
and in His word do I hope. My soul waiteth for
the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning;
yea, more than watchmen for the morning. O
Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there
is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption.
And He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
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